Can you Capture a Moment?
by Macy King
Summary: Yumi Goto is an easy going girl that doesn't do much to draw attention to herself. But when her best friend introduces her to a new male student Yumi's serene life behind her viewfinder starts to wilt and break, forcing her to take new risks and open up. A Hisao/OC story told from the perspective of my OC Yumi Goto. Harsh language
1. Act1, Chapter1: Silver linings

**Chapter 1- Silver Linings**

Beep. Beep. Beep.

_No. Just no. _

Beep beep. Beep beep. Beep beep.

_It's a Sunday today; Sunday is when I get to lie in. Why would you ruin this for me?_

With my eyes still firmly clamped shut and refusing to accept the light of a new day I clumsily grasp for my unlucky alarm clock, ready to hurl it across the room to its untimely demise. Unfortunately the beeping only grows from a dull annoyance to an incessant drill as my fumbling hands fail to find it. Cursing silently to myself I resign to opening my eyes, admitting defeat to my inanimate enemy. Shielding myself from the morning light and still subdued from my deep sleep, it takes me a few seconds to rally the strength to lift myself off my pillow but once my head is up my mind feels a lot clearer. Apparently in my vain attempts to shut down my alarm I managed to knock it off my nightstand and into a pile of clothes from yesterday. It currently sits beeping to itself inside a rather lovely blue bra that I had cast aside before dropping into bed last night. Groaning at the extra foot or so I have to stretch to stop the scathing sound I silence the alarm and set it down roughly where it was on my night stand before proceeding to fall back into bed staring up at the ceiling. I let out a long sigh.

_There goes my nice lie-in then, guess I forgot to turn it off last night._

Twisting onto my left shoulder to try and check the time brings a few strands of my pitch black hair over my face that are quickly swept away behind my ear. I've been meaning to get a trim for a while now; my hair always gets a bit messy once it reaches my shoulders but luckily it doesn't seem to grow any longer. Concentrating on the small black box in front of me I bring my focus back onto the digital display and whisper the time to my self in disbelief.

"Eight thirty in the morning?"

I groan again and bring my hands over my face, trying to rub some sleep away. Why am I even up this early? No one should be up at this time on a day off; anyone who voluntarily gets up this early should have their head checked. A short, sharp tone from the pile of clothes on my floor cuts through my inner monologue and I gingerly split the fingers on my right hand and peer through the gap. The offending noise was not my alarm clock this time, but my phone that I apparently also threw aside as I climbed into bed last night. Conceding to the notion of waking up I reluctantly let go of my last thoughts of going back to sleep and remove my hands from my face. I dig around through yesterday's clothes until I feel a cold, hard object and remove it from the heap. The small blinking light on the outside confirms that I have a text and as I flip it open a familiar name greats me. I fail to contain a scoff as I see the message is from Rika, damn morning person. I press the confirm button and read the message that springs onto my screen.

"Yumi Goto get your ass down here, you're already half an hour late!"

_Half an hour late… oh shit! The festival._

The Yamaku festival comes around only once a year but for the two weeks or so preceding it the school goes into a state of panic and disarray. Usually I do all that's within my power to stay as far away as possible from the preparations, I guess I don't have much school spirit. But this year my albino friend managed to twist my leg enough that I agreed to help set up and run the class stall, at least for a couple of hours. Well that was the plan anyway, I'm running a bit late.

Kicking my duvet off I leap out of bed and launch myself at the chest of draws in the corner of my room. Phone still in hand, I pull open the draws of my dresser one by one and pick out seemingly random pieces of clothing to change into, thankful for the brief seconds I saved by sleeping naked last night. Once my modesty is covered I stand in front of the mirror and quickly take in my appearance. What I've picked is a light blue tank top that compliments my average breasts nicely and a pair of black jeans that extenuate my slender legs and firm behind. I must remember to thank my mum for gifting me this body some time. My hair on the other hand is still an utter mess with black spikes sticking out and messy waves hanging just above my shoulders. I contemplate trying to copy Rika's braid to keep it under control but quickly give up and simply tie it up into a short scruffy ponytail, tucking my shorter fringe behind my left ear. I smile briefly back at my mirrored self before frowning as I notice one missing element of my outfit.

Slowly I bring my hand up to my left eye, careful not to misjudge the distance and unintentionally hurt myself. I edge closer to the mirror as my hand arrives at its destination and I gently pull down on my lower eyelid.

_Yep. Still fucked up._

I pivot my head to look at my eye from different angles but it's still the same mess it was eight years ago. There's still a blank, grey iris staring back at me, devoid of a pupil and unable to take in the world around it. It's an ugly, permanent reminder of the bullying and jokes from a time before Yamaku and the event that caused it. Sighing deeply, I retract my hand and lean back away from the mirror. I don't want to spend anymore time looking at it. My energy from the rush to get ready all but sapped from me, I drag my feet over to my bedside table and pick up the plain white eye patch left there for safe keeping. With practiced agility I slip the piece of material over my head and position it in roughly the right place, glancing back at my mirror to finalise its position. Although I hate this eye patch the one positive thing it does is make my already vibrant emerald eye stand out even more against my pale skin and black hair. Silver linings.

Pocketing my phone, I take a long look around my room for anything I've forgotten before shoving a handful of notes and coins I keep by the door in my other pocket. I've never really been one for bags or purses, they just get in the way and looking through a packed bag is harder than you'd think when you cant judge distances. The gentle chime of coins knocking against each other accompanies me as I leave my room and start on my journey to the festival. It seems I'm not the only one being forced out of bed at this time on a Sunday as a procession of weary faces accompany me out of the building, mumbling something about coffee and missed breakfasts. This is why I leave the organising to other people.

Outside the air is crisp and warm with the occasional bird singing to its neighbours filtering through the sound of Yamaku setting up for its festival. Everywhere I look there are people busily stapling last minute decorations onto stalls, teachers trying to keep their student workforce in check and many different varieties of food being cooked up in all manner of ways. My stomach growls as I pass by a particularly delicious looking noodle stand but I cant afford to be any later, Rika might end up stapling me to the booth as some sort of punishment if I am. I tear my eyes away from the mouth-watering delicacy and stride further into the festival, trying to remember where Rika said our class stall was going to be. After a bit of searching and backtracking I managed to find it nestled in amongst the other festival games. The stall for class 2-3 is fishing, a pretty standard booth for the Yamaku festival and this year it's our honour to do it. I couldn't be more thrilled.

"There you are!" My sarcastic thoughts are interrupted by the loud yell and accompanying finger of Rika who is now pacing over to me wearing a less than impressed scowl. The girl approaching is my best friend, Rika Katayama. She's an inch or two taller than me with what she claims is an almost identical build but we both know I've developed slightly faster than her. A long, pure white braid hangs down over her left shoulder and ends just above her belly button. Being an albino her features are dainty and fair, which contrast greatly with my striking eyes and lips. A few of the teachers at Yamaku call us Ebony and Ivory because of our hair

"Uhh Rika, hi." I say cheerily with a smile, trying to mask the fear growing in me as her face grows clearer the closer she gets. Maybe I should take a step back.

"I made you set an alarm, how are you this late?" I open my mouth to answer her but she continues ranting at me before I have a chance to respond. "Do you know how hard it is to put fish in a bag of water by yourself? They struggle. A lot."

Despite her serious expression I can't help but smile and giggle to my self at the image of Rika fumbling, trying to get a goldfish in a bag. She does not look impressed.

"Sorry, is my discomfort funny for you? And another thing-" She is interrupted mid flow by a loud thump from the stall behind her followed by a string of whispered curse words. So much for being by yourself Rika. This time it's my turn to frown at her as my white haired friend fidgets uncomfortably under my gaze, smiling sheepishly.

"By yourself huh?" I question, resting my hands on my hips in an over exaggerated way. Rika's resolve breaks and she lets out a stifled laugh, her face returning to its usual mischievous smile.

"Ok so maybe I wasn't _all_ alone. I managed to rope in some extra help from around the festival." Rika doesn't give me time to think about whom she may have convinced to help her as she grabs my hand and pulls me over to our stall almost at a run. "Hisao you can come out now, you ruined it."

_Hisao? I don't recognise that name._

After a second or two a boy rises up from under the table at the front of the stall, rubbing his head and smiling apologetically at my pale skinned friend. I was right not to recognise his name, I've never met him before. I don't think I've even seen him around school, which begs the question how does Rika know him? He stands a couple of inches taller than Rika so he must be three or four taller than me and he looks a bit older than both of us. Maybe he's a third year, but that puts even more questions about their meeting in my mind. There usually isn't much overlap between the different years at Yamaku; each one normally gets on with their business by themselves. Curiouser and curiouser. I cant say there is anything spectacularly eye catching about his appearance, that is to say that he isn't missing and arm or a leg. He is smiling but his face looks drained, like he isn't use to being up this early either, or he hasn't slept at all. His light brown hair messily frames his face with the exception of a single stubborn cowlick that is reaching for the sky on top of his head.

"Sorry Rika, there isn't a lot of room under there." Hisao continues to smile and rub his head as he sidesteps out of the booth and comes round to stand in front of Rika and I.

"It's ok Hisao, I don't think I would have been able to keep the charade up much longer anyway." Rika replies with a shrug of her shoulders before turning to me. "Yumi, this is Hisao Nakai, he's just transferred in. Hisao, this is my friend Yumi Goto that I was telling you about." My eyes narrow as I hear that. What has she been saying about me? Hisao on the other hand though wears an expression somewhere between embarrassment and fear; it's an odd emotion to see as you are introduced to someone but he bows none-the-less. I return the gesture and cant help but catch his lingering gaze on my eye patch before his cheeks redden slightly and he looks away. That look is a much more common thing to see on people's faces when I'm introduced to them for the first time and yet I still cant help but feel self conscious. Subconsciously I move my hand to cover my left eye but when I realise what I'm doing I cover it up by pretending to tuck my fringe behind my ear, not that it fools Rika who gently taps my foot with hers to grab my attention.

"Come on Yumi, Hisao has been good for the manual work but we could use your creative side for the final touches." She smiles at me warmly as she speaks and pulls me into the booth by my arm, leaving Hisao to awkwardly stare at our backs as we walk away… or our behinds as the unusual sway in Rika's hips may be suggesting. As we walk she pulls me close to whispers in my ear, making sure Hisao cant hear us.

"I'm sorry about that Yumi, I forgot to tell him before you arrived so don't take any notice of it. He's a nice guy though honest; plus he's really cute." She winks at me slyly and that mischievous grin springs back onto her face. We glance back towards Hisao who's running his hand through his hair and smiling nervously at us. I can't help but agree with her. A nudge from Rika's elbow brings me back to earth. "Just remember who saw him first." She says with another wink.

Rika doesn't give me a chance to respond with more than a raised eyebrow as she bellows over her shoulder for Hisao to hurry up and join us. Looking sheepish at best he does as instructed and regroups with us inside the stall, presumably waiting for Rika's next assignment.

"Ok Yumi, what I want you to do is simple really; make the stall look pretty." Rika sweeps her arm across the width of the stall and beams at me, apparently content with her request.

"Huh?" I reply, staring at her blankly.

"Come on you're artistic, jazz it up a bit. Make it look less like a worn out shack and more like a fun festival stall."

"Rika I take photographs, I don't do interior design or whatever it is you'd call this. Plus I cant just magic decorations and paint out of thin air." Shrugging my shoulders for emphasises, I take a seat on the corner of the table that isn't covered in water.

"AHAH!" Her exclamation is so abrupt that I jump a little on my perch, causing a handful of fish to wobble tentatively. "That part I have sorted, Hisao!" Before she finishes talking our male companion retrieves two tins of paint, glue and a box of festival decorations from a hiding spot in the corner of the stall. I eye the box and it's bearer suspiciously.

"Sorry." Hisao apologises, again breaking eye contact and looking at the floor to avoid my stare. My glare softens at his surprisingly cute display and I let out a huff in mock indignation to show him I don't really mind. He seems to catch on as he raises his head back up and smiles at me which makes me feel good. Rika however makes no such cute actions and so gets the full brunt of my venomous stare.

"Well what a happy coincidence that was. Fine I'll help you, but don't expect anything good." Her increasing grin only makes my stare harden but I soon crack a smile back, Rika just isn't a person you can stay mad at.

"Thanks Yumi, you're the best." She pulls me in to a quick hug that catches me off guard. "I've got some student council stuff to be getting on with so if you two start with this I'll be back later to add the finishing touches ok?"

_Wait a second…_

But before I can even raise a hand to protest my white haired friend dashes out of the stall with surprisingly nimble moves and starts jogging off towards the school, turning around momentarily to wave goodbye. So now it's just Hisao and I. Rika has left me alone with Hisao, this boy I met maybe ten minutes earlier for an undisclosed period of time. Well I cant ever see what could be awkward about this.


	2. Act 1, Chapter 2: Third time's a charm

**Chapter 2- Third times a charm**

"So… hey"

"Yeah… hi"

_Well would you look at that, it is awkward after all._

Hisao and I stand a few feet apart, myself rooted to the spot by nerves, but I don't know what's keeping him so still. At least we have spoken to each other now and there is no longer an unbroken silence hanging between us. Now there are a few disjointed words dancing in our midst instead. This is stupid I can talk to boys normally, what's wrong with me? Never mind, just take a breath and dive in before the sound of crickets becomes deafening.

"Uhh Hisao, for me to start making the booth look _pretty_ as Rika so eloquently put it I'm going to need the paint and decorations." The brown haired boy looks at me inquisitively for a second until a light bulb above his head burst into life and he fumbles for the box now sitting at his feet, a faint crimson emanating from his cheeks. Hisao sure does seem to get embarrassed easily but I cant say it's a trait that I don't like or understand. Transferring to a new school and meeting a whole new set of people is a pretty daunting experience, plus boys look kind of adorable when they blush.

"Oh sorry, I was a bit distracted by… never mind." Hisao cuts himself short and swiftly picks the box of festival goodies up before handing them to me, all the while refusing to make eye contact. That isn't an uncommon thing for new people to do when talking to me; people don't like to stare so instead go to extreme measures to avoid looking me in the eye. If anything that is worse. I wish they wouldn't, life would be a lot simpler if people just got over it and moved on. Feeling a little resentful after going down that particular train of thought I snatch the box from Hisao harder than I intended but it seems he would rather just ignore it and talk about something else which is fine by me.

"So Rika said you two are in the same class." He has turned away from me now and is busying himself with the bagged fish.

"Yeah we're both in class 2-3, although miss class representative is a much bigger part of it than I am." The box of festival decorations seems to mainly be from last Christmas, as do the paints that come in two varieties: red or green. This could make my task a little tougher.

"You don't normally do stuff like this then?" Hisao calls over his shoulder, still paying most of his attention to his aquatic friends.

"Nope, too many early mornings for my liking." Just the thought of getting out of bed at this time makes me yawn and I struggle in vain to mask it, which draws a flat chuckle from Hisao.

"I hear you there, I almost went back to sleep after my alarm got me up this morning but I don't think I know Rika well enough to test her mercy yet." I let out a brief giggle and lift my head up to respond to the back of his head but to my surprise I find him now facing me glancing between the box of decorations and myself. The corners of Hisao's mouth curl up into the slightest of smiles and he gestures at the box "Need a hand?"

I match his smile and brush the lawless strands of hair that have fallen in front of my face behind my ear before nodding at him. "If you wouldn't mind, I'm still not sure what she expects me to do but I'm sure between us we can make something work."

Ramping up his smile Hisao bends down and joins me in rummaging through the box, picking out the occasional decoration he thinks would look good.

"So how do you know Rika then?" I ask absentmindedly, still digging around for any lost treasure that I can find. There is a few seconds of silence before Hisao answers.

"We met in the nurses office." His words carry more weight than I think he meant as his tone has dropped to a more serious one. I know that Rika has a heart condition, she told me about it when we first met, and that she regularly has to see the nurse so it makes sense that she would eventually run into a new transfer student there. I wonder if Rika knows why Hisao is here then, if they did indeed meet in the nurse's office she may have overheard them talking. It doesn't look as if Hisao wants to go into the subject anymore though so instead I start back up my search for decorations.

I steal a glance at my companion's slowly growing pile of items and my eyebrows rise in trepidation, instead of gathering decorations fit for a fishing stall he appears to be amassing a small origami zoo at his feet. He must have noticed me looking as he picks up one of the cranes and holds it between us.

"I know they don't have much to do with fishing but none of the stuff in here does either so I thought we could just dot them around the stall so we at least have something." Hisao twirls the origami bird around with his fingers as he speaks, clearly entranced by the small folded creature. Origami doesn't hold the same appeal for me but his idea is better than any I have come up with so far.

"Yeah sure, go ahead. I haven't come up with anything yet so that sounds great. This sort of thing isn't really my forte." I retrieve a crumpled lantern from the bottom of the box that looks like it has seen better days and toss it to the side as I speak.

"Oh that's right, you said you did photography right?" Hisao questions, carefully placing the crane back with the rest.

"Uh-hu." I reply with a paintbrush between my teeth. I think the sign would look best in red… no wait green, or maybe-

"What sort of stuff do you take photos of?" Hisao asks interrupting my colour dilemma. I remove the wooden tool from my mouth to answer him this time and instead flick it through the air in time with the rhythm of my speech.

"Anything that catches my eye really; people, landscapes, animals. But I'd have to say people are my favourite subjects, when I can get a model that is. You can capture so much emotion in a split second of someone's expression that it makes everything else seem dull in comparison."

"Sounds like you're really into it, how come you have trouble finding models?" You sure are curious about my photography Hisao.

"Well I guess that isn't strictly true. I can ask Rika to be a model when I need her but sometimes she has student council work to do, and I don't think she is too keen on the idea after we did that naked shoot." Out of the corner of my eye I can see that my comment has had the desired effect on Hisao. The poor boy has frozen up completely; his face has taken on a deep red hue and his eyes have widened to the point where they look like they are trying to escape from his skull. His expression is priceless and I can't help but stare and laugh at the shock on his face, which only makes him look more confused.

"It's ok Hisao no need to have a heart attack, I was only kidding." I manage to say between giggles. "I've never done anything like that with Rika… not yet anyway"

Hisao's face begins to return to its normal colour and his eyes return to their regular size, if a little shaky. To my surprise he actually brings a hand up and gently rubs his chest but a smile creeps on to his face as he looks back at me. "You… you had me going for a second there."

Matching his smile I get back to painting the stall's sign, having decided that green will indeed look the best.

"So what do you like to do then?" I ask, not looking up from my work. "Photography is my hobby, what about yours?"

Hisao recalls slightly at my question and his face contorts into an odd expression, somewhere between sorrow and pain. Shit, Hisao is a transfer student, what if he is here because something happened to him and whatever brought him here stopped him doing his hobby. If that is the case having it brought up so casually in conversation was probably one of the worst things I could have said.

"I uhh… I guess I don't really have one." Hisao's quiet stuttering voice brings me back to earth with a thud. His shoulders are slumped and instead of looking at me his eyes are now pointed at his feet. "I used to play soccer with my friends but now… I guess reading would be my hobby."

The atmosphere between us has become awkward again and Hisao's glare remains stuck to his shoes. I want to know what happened to him, why he can no longer play soccer and he has had to come to Yamaku but I feel its curiosity that has me interested instead of a genuine want to understand the brown haired boy. So instead I hold my tongue, if he wants me to know I'm sure he will tell me.

"I guess you've visited the library then." I say in a hurried attempt to pull the conversation back into friendlier territory.

"Yeah." He replies, almost in a whisper. This is getting us nowhere, he is still transfixed with his feet but his eyes seemed to have glazed over like he is looking right through the earth itself. I dig into my pocket and get rewarded with my phone, flipping it open to glance at the time I find that it's only just pasted half ten. It's still a little early for lunch but the stall is looking decent and I'm more than certain Hisao could do with a break from his thoughts. A walk round the festival is needed I feel.

"Hisao I think we've done enough here, if you put the sign up I'll give one of my classmates a call and we can go look around the festival ok?" His eyes come back up to meet mine and I smile at him, hoping my plan will raise his spirits. It seems to work as a faint gleam returns to his brow eyes and a weary smile replaces his sullen expression.

"Yeah, that sounds good." His voice has regained a touch of its former strength and his smile grows as he nods and takes the sign from me. A warm feeling grows through me at seeing him smile again, it makes me doubly happy knowing I was the one to bring it back.

After a call to Akari, one of the other girls in my class, and a little bit of grovelling on my end I manage to convince her to turn up for her shift an hour early so that Hisao and I can have a walk around.

"Thanks Akari, I'll make it up to you at some point." I call over my shoulder as my new friend and I start towards the festivities. Can I call Hisao a friend yet? I mean he seems like a nice enough guy and we get along well if you ignore the odd spot of awkwardness so yeah, I think I'd like to be his friend. With this thought in my mind I turn to him to get his attention and he in turn looks back down at me, the height difference is more noticeable now we are standing next to each other.

"So what do you want to do first?" I ask holding my hands behind my back. I wait patiently for his response as the cogs and gears in his head get to work.

"Well Rika said she would give me the tour once the stall was set up but she isn't back yet so I don't really know." He looks contemplatively around at the many stalls and attractions before pointing at me and beaming. "I guess you're my guide now."

"Well it seems you drew the short straw then because I was counting on Rika guiding me around as well, things have shifted around since last year." I narrow my vision and quickly scan the stalls, trying to pick one that I recognise to start with. I settle on a candy apple stall and start heading towards it, noticing after a few steps that Hisao isn't following. I turn around and start walking backwards to see him stood perfectly still, apparently lost in thought.

"Hey Hisao wake up!" I call to him with a cheesy grin, snapping him out of his inner monologue and bringing his eyes back to me. He smiles back and trots after me, quickly catching up and falling into step beside me as I turn to walk forwards again.

"Sorry about that I-"

"Got distracted?" I interrupt with a wry grin, keeping my eye forward. "I've noticed you do it a couple of times now, is everything alright?" I glance up at him to gauge his response but luckily he doesn't seem as jolted as he did the last time.

"Yeah I'm fine. It's just that Yamaku is so strange compared to my last school, everything here is so new to me and all the people are so… different." He cringes as his use of the word; this environment definitely is new to him. There are many students here, me included, that would take different as an insult, but he quickly tries to correct himself. "I don't mean different, that was a poor choice of words. I mean… unique?"

"You should probably stop digging a hole before you fall into it Hisao." I tease, which rewards me with a blush and a frustrated sigh from my brown haired companion. I nudge him gently with my elbow to bring his attention back to me and smile warmly. "Tip number one for life at Yamaku; try not to use words like different and unique when describing people. Kids here just want to be seen as normal, they don't want to be defined by their disability."

There is a short pause before Hisao speaks again; he looks deep in contemplation but eventually his focus returns back at me and he smiles apologetically. "Thanks Yumi, I guess I never thought of it that way. Sorry if I offended you."

"No worries, you can make it up to me by paying for my food for the day." It's a ridiculous thing to ask I know and I don't expect him to take me up on it but it makes him laugh and that's good enough.

"Ok, fair enough."

_Wait what?_

"You- you don't have to. I was only joking." I stammer.

"No it's ok I don't mind, you don't look like you eat that much and it's what friends do." He smiles broadly at me as he pulls his wallet out of his back pocket and counts out the correct change, swapping it for two candy apples with the student behind the desk. Maintaining his friendly grin he holds out one of the delicious sweets for me and I shyly accept it, offering a quiet thank you before taking my first bite.

The sweet toffee shell cracks beneath my teeth and the crisp flesh of the apple tears apart with a satisfying noise as I savour the delicacy. I can't help but sigh contentedly and close my eye as the sweet and sour tastes blend perfectly in my mouth. I think this is the most satisfied a person can be without slipping a hand into their pants. As I slowly open my eyes I'm greeted by a very puzzled looking Hisao who is eyeing me up quizzically.

"Are they really that good? It looks like that was almost orgasmic." I guess it's his turn to tease now, but it's ok. I wouldn't mock him if I couldn't take it myself.

"It's pretty damn close. Try it." I say, gesturing to his apple with my own. He looks at it suspiciously for a second before shrugging his shoulders and digging in. He looks un-impressed for the first few chews but then his eyes close shut and he too produces a guttural moan from his throat. He looks a bit silly actually; I guess that's why he was looking at me odd. I feel a brief heat in my cheeks but cover it up by turning towards the rest of the festival and taking another bite of my heavenly treat.

"Ok you were right, this thing is amazing." Hisao manages to say through a mouthful of apple as he appears beside me again. "What's next then, I remember seeing a ring toss game that looked pretty fun on my way here."

Ahh ring toss, not personally my favourite festival game, anything that takes a precise aim is usually something I try to avoid. I toy with the idea of taking Hisao in the wrong direction but walking around the festival was my idea to cheer him up so not doing what he wants would kind of defeat the object of it. I think the ring toss is in relatively the same place each year so I nod and start to head towards it.

"I'm not too sure but I think the ring toss will be this way. I don't normally go to it though so I could be wrong."

"Why's that?" Hisao asks innocently, looking around at the nearby stalls and nibbling on his apple.

"We are sorry Miss Goto but for the rest of your life you will experience problems with precision and depth perception." I recite what the doctors told me as I left hospital after the accident, their words still as clear as they were eight years ago. Hisao looks at me blankly for a second so instead of explaining further I simply point to my covered eye. Realisation dawns on his face and he looks away in embarrassment but I grab his arm and turn him back towards me.

"Hey it's ok Hisao, honestly you forgetting about it is a good thing. It's much better than tip-toeing around the subject." I put on my most sincere smile and I am delighted to see him reciprocate with one of his own.

"Ok now lets go find this ring toss stall so I can laugh at you when you loose." Hisao cracks into a laugh himself as I pull him by the arm towards the stall, now visible through a gap in the jostling crowd. I let go of his arm as we reach the stall and we stand in line behind a group of first years also waiting for a chance to win something. Although not lost in though, Hisao is wearing an odd expression and as he turns to me he opens his mouth but cant seem to find the words he is looking for, deciding instead to give up on his thought and face forward again.

"Something up?" I ask, his brow now furrowed as if he was frustrated.

"Well I was just wondering…" He hesitates as he fiddles with the ring toss money he holds in his palm before turning to look me in the eye. "What's it like? Only having one eye I mean. You said you can't judge depth well, does it ever stop you doing things?"

Now it's my turn to hesitate. I'm not the sort of person to shy away from talking about my disability if asked but I have only known Hisao for a few hours. I'm not sure I want to start delving into the specific pains of being blind in one eye. Luckily for me we appear to have reached the front of the line. I blink my eye quickly and look up at him smiling gently.

"Come on then Hisao, try and win a bear for me. No pressure but if you fail we can no longer be friends."

Hisao looks momentarily disheartened but a smile quickly returns to his face. He pays for three rings and readies himself, carefully eyeing up his target. As I watch him he raises and lowers his arm, I guess trying to judge how much force he needs, before letting fly with his first disk.

Miss.

"Close." I jest with a smirk, leaning up against the front of the stall with my arms crossed. He looks over to me and I swear I see his eyes travel over my body before he turns back to the rings with a look of fresh determination.

Miss.

"Ooh it's getting tense now." My smirk has evolved into a full on grin with bared teeth and all. Teasing Hisao is proving to be a very fun past time. "Don't forget, miss this one and you'll be spending the rest of the festival on your own."

"How exactly is that a bad thing?" Hisao asks. He keeps looking forward but I can see the edges of a smile on his lips.

"Well maybe I should just go then." I push myself off from the stall and make to walk away but Hisao's voice catches me before I can get very far. As I turn around I find him looking right at me and for some reason I cant seem to take another step. Something in the way he looks at me is keeping me held here.

"Wait. If you go how will I give you your bear?" Without missing a beat he tosses the final ring over his shoulder, never so much as glancing at his target. Apparently our charade attracted the attention of the surrounding students as the general din around us has died down. The wooden ring's flight is accompanied by a dozen sets of eyes as everyone holds their breath in case somehow exhaling would throw the ring off its course. With a dull thud that in the relative quiet surrounding us sounds like an earthquake the ring hits its target, Hisao managed to get it round a peg. The crowd remains eerily silent for a second before the realisation hits them and a cheer erupts from all around us. Before I know it people I've never spoken to are congratulating Hisao and me with pats on the back and thumbs up. The boy running the stall gets down a small brown furred bear and hands it to Hisao who himself looks a little dumbstruck that he was actually able to make the shot. Looking a little embarrassed at the sudden attention he has garnered he makes his way over to me and presents me with his prize.

"Thanks, that was one hell of a shot."

"Just lucky." He says with a brief shrug of his shoulders. I think he's just being modest. I open my mouth to respond but a male voice from the back of the crowd beats me to it.

"Just kiss her already!"

_What?! Oh lord no; he's not my boyfriend!_

I can't hide my face behind the bear quick enough and I can hear giggles coming from a group of girls at the front of the crowd. My face is bright red, and I mean _bright_ red. I'm talking sunset red here. Hisao isn't much better than me but he chooses to try and brush the embarrassment off with a laugh as he runs his hand through the back of his hair.

"Shall we move on to another stall?" He asks but I find myself only able to nod in reply, my face still burning and hidden behind the bear he won for me. Accompanied by a few boos and disappointed groans we walk away from the ring toss game, making sure to stay further away from each other than we were before.


	3. Act 1, Chapter 3: Fire and Moonlight

**Chapter 3- Fire and Moonlight**

The high noon sun has taken up its rightful place in the centre of the sky. It's golden rays gently warm the soft breeze that blows through the grounds of Yamaku giving the festival a summery feel despite it being late spring. All around the smell of freshly cooked food fills the air and entices easily tempted students and locals into a pricey lunch; of course I have a Hisao paying for my lunch so I don't have to worry about that. We pass some idle chatter between us as we mill through the rest of the festival, stopping of at the odd stall every now and then to try out some of the games on offer. Despite a valiant effort and the best part of one thousand five hundred Yen Hisao didn't managed to win himself a watch and before long my mind starts to wander back to Rika and her whereabouts.

"Are you sure she didn't tell you any sort of time before I arrived?" I ask Hisao, absentmindedly swinging my legs back and forth under the bench where we have chosen to take a break.

"Nope." Hisao replies as he takes a sip from his can of coffee. As he lowers the can a sly smile grows across his face. "All she said was that we should play a trick on you as you are apparently always late. Which as it turns out she was right about."

I jab him in the side with my elbow and ready my snide comeback but vibrations and a pleasant tone from my pocket interrupt me. Stretching my leg out in front of me so I can get to my phone I draw it out of my pocket and inspect the screen for the caller I.D.

"About damn time." I mumble as I flip open the device and press the answer key. "What time do you call this?"

"I'm sorry Yumi!" An apoplectic Rika howls down the phone to me in a fit of fake tears before returning to her usual lilt with a giggle. "It was only meant to take an hour but Hackamichi kept me for an extra two because she didn't trust me to do our class paperwork and wanted to 'personally over-see its completion'. I can't blame the rest of the student council for leaving her, dealing with her on class representative duties is hard enough."

I stifle a laugh at the mocking tone Rika's voice takes on as she tries to impersonate Hackamichi's interpreter Mikado, known around the school as Misha. I have never talked to her personally but I sure as hell have heard her, the girl is like a pink haired loudspeaker turned up to max volume.

"At least you've finished now, they can't hurt you anymore."

"You'd be surprised." Rika responds with sincerity, which worries me for a second but I don't believe even Hackamichi would go as far as physical injury. Unless Rika _really_ messed up that is. "Anyway, let me make it up to you. I'll buy you both lunch, my treat."

I ponder her offer for a moment but a brief glance towards the absentminded Hisao brings his kind hearted gesture back to my mind and gives me a much better idea. He catches me looking at him from the corner of my eye and a devilish smile finds its way on to my lips that brings out a terrified expression in my new friend. I keep eye contact with him but continued talking to Rika.

"No it's ok, I have a better idea. We'll meet you back at the class stall."

"Umm Yumi, what's that smile all about?" Hisao asked tentatively, a nervous smile gracing his features.

"Nothing to worry about, I just hope you didn't spend to much money trying to win that watch. Come on." I turn my back to him and peek over my shoulder, gesturing for him to follow. He looks deep in thought for a second or two but quickly complies and takes up his spot beside me, still a good arms length away.

I've managed to learn the new parts and reacquaint myself with the older bits of the festival layout so we have no trouble backtracking our way to class 2-3's stall which we find is now surrounded by a crowd of people eagerly awaiting their turn to catch themselves a fish. Amongst the crowd I can see a few faces I recognise including Akari whom is sill hanging around the stall with her group of friends but I don't think it's her shift anymore. Ibarazaki Emi, Rika's running partner, is there as well which is probably a good sign that my albino friend beat us here. Ibarazaki is a short girl, especially for a third year but that might have something to do with the prosthetic legs she is wearing. She keeps her hair in two symmetrical pigtails and is wearing a loose fitting green tank top over a white t-shirt. From his vantage point seven or so centimetres above me Hisao manages to spot Rika before I do and calls out to her with an accompanying wave. I see brief flashes of white between the huddle before Rika squeezes her way through a gap and emerges triumphantly in front of us.

"What took you guys so long?" She says with a scowl on her face and her hands on her hips but her eyes give away her amusement, at least to me. Hisao answers for us, taking a possible dig at his walking pace away from me.

"My bad, I'm not the fastest walker." Hisao rubs the back of his neck, still a little wary of Rika's mock anger it seems.

"That's because you've been skipping running!" I hear Ibarazaki yell from her place in the crowd, apparently loosing both one's legs give you impeccable hearing. Rika breaks into a laugh and points a stern finger towards Hisao.

"Hisao Nakai, you should be ashamed. You've made Emi here very sad."

"So sad!" Ibarazaki chimes in again, now walking over to our little group.

So I guess Hisao runs with Emi like Rika, or at least he did at some point and has since stopped. I don't blame him; I find running exhausting as well. Just walking from the girl's dormitory to the main building is enough exercise for me thank you very much. Actually now I think about it that could be how he met Rika, they probably ran into each other at the track one day and got talking.

"I only missed one day and I came to find you and apologise as soon as I woke up." Hisao raises his hands in front of his chest as if he were worried the two girls would physically assault him, "I'll be back on the track tomorrow morning, just give me a break today?"

Rika and Ibarazaki look at each other silently through sceptical eyes, occasionally gesturing to Hisao and whispering between themselves but it's all for show, the grins plastered to their faces give it away far too easily. The two conspiring girls nod in unison before turning their attention back to Hisao who looks slightly more uncomfortable than he did a few moments ago.

"Ok, if you promise to keep up with the running from now on then we will forgive you." Rika says to Hisao, a cheeky smile still present on her face.

"Deal." Hisao responds, breathing a sigh of relief at not being made to do anything embarrassing. I would have had him dance through the school or something but that's just me.

"Also you have to buy us lunch." Ibarazaki pipes up from Rika's left with a toothy grin and giggle that easily matches if not tops the white haired girl standing next to her.

"That works out well, as I was going to ask you to buy Rika and me lunch anyway." I say, winking at the legless girl who responds with another child-like giggle. Hisao looks down at me pleadingly for a shred of sympathy but the wry smile he receives does nothing to ease him. A quick glance between all three of our relenting gazes seals his fate and he admits defeat with a resentful shrug of his shoulders.

"Ok fine, just this once though." But I don't think any of us believe that. After a quick discussion we decide to be kind to Hisao and simply get some cheap Yakisoba, much to Ibarazaki's disgust. Instead she chose a healthier option of some edamame and a sandwich from a smaller nearby stall, all the while disappointedly eyeing up Rika, Hisao and myself. We pick out a bench in the grounds that looks over towards the festival so we can people watch and start our feast with Hisao sitting on the edge and us three girls on his left.

"Emi you can stop with the glaring now, you'll put me off my meal."

"It should do that itself Hisao, I can practically see the grease from here." Emi barks as she turns her nose up at the boxed meal and grumpily takes a bite of her sandwich before turning to me. "I'm Ibarazaki Emi by the way but just call me Emi, I think I forgot to introduce myself amongst all the food talk."

I bow my head slightly in confirmation and swallow my food before replying.

"Likewise… I mean forgetting to introduce myself not that I'm also called Emi. Rika has mentioned you before, my name's Goto Yumi but Yumi is fine." I blush slightly at my blunder but Emi's sour expression at the meal choice grows warm at our introduction and she lets out a girlish giggly. Emi sure does smile a lot; I can see why Rika gets on so well with her. She chews another bite of her sandwich before speaking again, covering her hand with her mouth.

"I've been told about you as well, Rika has said that I shouldn't always believe what you say." She finishes her mouthful with an accusative eyebrow raised and looks me over like I am some sort of magician, hoping that if she looks hard enough she will decipher my greatest trick. From between us Rika brings a hand to her mouth and unsuccessfully stifles a giggle that rewards her with a sharp tap on the knee from my chopsticks. She coughs a little and takes a sip from a can of drink she brought on the way over but keeps her mouth shut. Good choice my white haired friend.

"Ignore Rika she is always doing this." I lean across Rika and motion for Emi to join me, careful to make sure that Rika can still hear me perfectly fine. "She tries to turn people against me because I intimidate her, it's a little sad."

This time I am the one that gets a thwack from a pair of chopsticks but Rika chooses to be less kind than me and flicks me on the ear, sendng me jumping back onto the bench accompanied by a sharp stinging pain where my right ear used to be. Looking sideways to Rika I see she is wearing a content smirk and humming quietly as she continues with her meal. I let out a frustrated huff and collect a large ball of noodles on my chopsticks before depositing them in my mouth in a less than ladylike way.

We finish the rest of our lunch in silence, content to just sit and watch as students and other festival goers pass us by walking to and from different attractions. Occasionally one of our entourage will wave or say hello to a member of the crowd but apart from an overly polite blonde girl who was searching for a friend no one sticks around longer than a few minutes. As Hisao finishes the last of his Yakisoba we all rise and head for the nearest bin and drop of our rubbish before Emi parts ways with us saying she had to go see a mural one of her friends had painted. Hisao tells Rika and me she means the one in front of the girl's dorms. I can't say I'm a fan of Emi's friend's art; it's a little too creepy for me. With Emi's twin tails bouncing off into the mass of people to the rhythm of her feverish pace, Hisao and I decide to take Rika on a walk round the festival as the student council took up the whole of the morning she and Hisao had planned. As we wander in triplicate I can't help but notice the subtle differences in how Rika holds herself around Hisao than if she were with just me.

She is a lot more hands on than normal I guess is the best way to put it. When she laughs at one of his jokes, she regularly brushes his arm with her hand or bumps up against his shoulder while they walk. She reaches across him to point out parts of the festival as well, often taking his hand in hers to pull his attention back to her before stealing him away in the direction of a stall she likes leaving me behind to catch up. As the day goes on I ultimately end up following them around like a stray cat. Hisao manages to win Rika a stuffed Dalmatian from a lottery stall with she decides to name Hisao and her new friend spends the rest of the day with its face occupying the space between Rika's breasts, a space I could have sworn was smaller this morning. Afternoon slowly gives way to the creeping blanket of evening and before long the sun starts to set, spreading a warm orange light across the sky above Yamaku. The dusk sun brings the closing firework show ever closer and if last years display was anything to go by I am going to want my camera for this year's one. With that in mind I call to Rika and Hisao who are currently walking a metre and a half in front of me.

"Rika, I'm just going to go back to my room for a bit and get my camera, where do you guys think you'll be for the display?"

"The display?" Hisao asks with a hint of excitement in his voice.

"Yeah there's a big firework show when it gets dark, it's really good." Rika answers for me whilst smiling at Hisao as she has been all afternoon. When she turns to me she is still smiling but not as brightly as she was when focusing on out new friend. "Under our tree."

I smile back at the two of them and give them a shallow bow, giggling slightly at the look of bemusement on Hisao's face. "Ok I'll meet you there when it gets dark. See you two later."

As I turn to leave and start walking away I catch a wisp of Rika laughing but their voices are mere murmurs amongst the evening din of the festival. The yells of students and announcements over the loud speaker grow gentle and fade slowly as I approach the girl's dorm, stopping momentarily to take a look at the finished mural. The colours swirl and group together to form people and faces, distorted and warped by the artist to no doubt symbolise something but I couldn't tell you if you offered me ten thousand Yen.

"Is it hard?" A voice from behind breaks me from my concentration with a start and I yelp quietly as I whirl around. I find my self face to face with an armless red-haired girl wearing a boy's uniform who looks like she has gone days without sleep, or at least very few hours of it. Her eyes are like mine, a vivid green but unlike me she has faint bags present and well... two of them. She stares at me nonchalantly and awaits the answer to her question.

"Is what hard?" I ask her back tentatively; unsure as to where this conversation is going.

"Seeing things."

"Seeing things?" I mimic.

"With one eye covered, how do you see things to your left?" The red haired girl pivots her head to one side and stares directly at my left eye, her gaze making me more uncomfortable by the second. I fidget under her gaze and as if reading my mind she stops. Her head returns to an upright position and her eyes open wider, the bags from before seeming to vanish with the motion.

"It doesn't matter, I'm in more of a right mood today anyway. People that walk by on the right look at my mural more than any other direction." She may be just trying to make me feel better about her upfront question but it distracts me at least.

"This is your mural?"

"Yep." She answers, turning her right side towards the mural and eyeing it up. So this must be Emi's friend then. It can't be a coincidence that Emi has no legs and this girl has no arms.

Silence falls between us and I join her in observing her mural. It's very bold, with thick brush strokes and vivid colours and made even more impressive by the fact that the painter has no hands to hold a brush with. As interesting as the finished product turned out to be I can't find a suitable compliment for it, so I settle with a rather lacklustre attempt at flattery instead.

"It looks great, you're very talented." She smiles at me, at least I think it's a smile, and nods her head. She has no doubt heard that same compliment a thousand times today but doesn't seem to mind, she seems too laid back to really care what people think of her work and I like that. She keeps that same half smile on her face as silence surrounds us again and in spite of her relaxed appearance I find myself growing awkward in her presence. Remembering what I came for I give a slight bow and head for the dormitory door.

"Goodbye, it was nice meeting you-?"

"Rin."

"Ok, my name's Yumi Goto. Bye Rin, have a good night." She doesn't answer, instead choosing to peer intently at a spot on the mural as I push through the front doors of the girl's dorm and head up to my room.

My camera is one of the only things in my room that I can instantly find no matter when it was last used. It always takes pride of place sitting on my windowsill in its carrier accompanied by its battery charger and a straight-to-film printer. The camera itself is my pride and joy, I've had it for just over a year now and it's starting to show its age but back then it was top of the range. My mother saved up for months to surprise me on my birthday with it and reliving the memory brings a smile to my face. I grab the camera with a spring in my step and head for the door, excited to be out taking pictures of people again. I wonder if Rin would mind me taking photos of her…

Unfortunately I don't get the chance to ask as the crimson haired girl seems to have left her vigil to watch the fireworks. I've still got a good ten minutes until they are scheduled to start so I decide to take my time as I make my way to Rika and my special tree. As I walk I keep my eye glued to the viewfinder, snapping photos of anything and everything that catches my eye. Through a viewfinder the world seems to come alive and the challenge of capturing that perfect moment when the space around a point overlaps in such beauty makes me feel alive with it. The snaking gold trail of a girl's hair illuminated in the moonlight as she dashes past her friends is that sort of moment. It's a moment that stirs up memories you can look back on and re-live, or creates whole new fantasies in your mind as you try to imagine the scene for yourself. The star of my new photo runs on towards her friends without realising what has happened and I too continue walking towards my goal. As I walk I continue to scan the festival with my camera, the party lights and cooking fires that still burn make for an interesting backdrop as I search for opportunities but a waving figure in the distance catches my eye. I bring my hand forward to the lens of the camera and twist, zooming in on the blurred figure until it finds focus. He is still slightly out of focus but standing between two stalls just out of camera range is a waving Hisao. My beaming smile is hidden behind the body of the camera as I approach him, snapping a shot of him as I draw near.

"You could have warned me if you were going to take a photo, I would have sorted this mess out." He gestures up to his hair and I have to resist the urge to ruffle it. His cowlick from early seems to have grown and gained a number of imitators as the day has gone on. "I was just getting Rika a drink, would you like one?"

Although having Hisao pay for me all day has been nice I'm starting to feel a little guilty for taking so much from him so I politely refuse, opting instead to buy my own drink which he insists on carrying for me. I take the opportunity to snap a few more pictures of him, this time from a much more agreeable angle and distance. As I take photo after photo of Hisao the nuances of his personality start to show through like the small lines that form around his eyes when he laughs deeply or the way his lips curl when he is being sarcastic. Before I can delve deeper into my photos though we arrive at our destination; a large and ancient cherry tree situated on the very edge of the school grounds behind the main building. Its knotted and haggard branches no longer bear the beautiful cherry blossoms of its youth but they offer enough shade in the summer sun to keep both Rika and me cool. It being night renders this point moot at the moment but our tree I still a place we can relax away from the jostling crowds of the festival.

"About time you showed up Yumi, I was afraid you were going to miss it." Rika greets Hisao and me with a smile as we approach her. "Come sit next to me Hisao, Yumi can take some photos of us."

_Someone's keen to have pictures taken of her all of a sudden._

I keep the thought to myself and instead set about finding the perfect spot for both the display and my two friends. Pretty lights in the sky are all well and good but seeing a person's reactions to the explosive display is much better. After some thought I decide to position my self a meter or two to the right of Rika and Hisao so I can easily pan between the fireworks themselves and my friends. From this position a gentle beam of moonlight falls across their frame and brings out a mysterious, ethereal look in them. Rika's pure white hair seems to burn with light as it reflects the moon and her pale skin glimmers under the night's gentle caress. Hisao in contrast seems to blend into the night as if he was a creature from its inky depths. His brown hair is a mere dark mass which matches his eyes, in this dark night they appear pitch black surrounded by a white border instead of their usual brown iris. Maybe it is because he is next to Rika who appears to radiate faint light like a muted lantern but Hisao seems to do the opposite and absorb light instead. With each beam of the moon that dances across him he seems to grow more distant, the familiar expression of being lost in thought occupying his face.

A loud bang from above the tree line snaps him out of his daze and Hisao gazes up at the ember glow of the newly released firework. The shimmering debris stays alight for a second before fading back to black leaving only faint smoke in its wake. Another green explosion follows its brother, then white and another orange as the pattern of colour continues. Each firework illuminates the ground below to the distant cries of admiration coming from the festival. I breathe deeply and time my shutter finger with the light from the fireworks, trusting the un-natural light from the gunpowder rockets to keep my subjects in focus without having to use my camera's flash. With each passing explosion Hisao's face is lit up and the wonder in his eyes becomes clear, he is so transfixed by the display he doesn't seem to have noticed that Rika has edged her way closer to him and is now resting her head on his shoulder. As I look upon my two friends in such close proximity I start to feel an uncomfortable heat in my gut that threatens to turn away my gaze but luckily for me the display abruptly ends and plunges the school back into darkness.

"I think that was even better than last year!" Rika is the first to speak into the void. "What did you think Hisao?"

"Yeah it was really great. Get some good pictures Yumi?" His question is directed at my but where he thinks I am and where I actually am are two very different places.

"I think so yeah. I'll show them to you when I print them out." I say flicking through the pictures on the camera's small digital display. They are mostly pictures of Hisao. With the firework display over our trio starts the walk back to the dormitories in relative silence until we part outside the dorms. Rika and I wave to Hisao as we enter the girl's dorm and he reciprocates, smiling before turning around and heading for his own building. No sooner are we inside then Rika turns to me and excitedly bounces on her toes.

"So what do you think of him? He's nice right? And soooo cute. Do you think he likes me? I mean we flirted a bit but I don't know if that means anything…" As much as I try I can't seem to pay attention to what she is saying. Rika is my friend and I value her more than anyone else at Yamaku but I can't shake the burning feeling in the depths of my stomach. I like Hisao as well.


End file.
